Derry grad John Kerr makes most of regular playing time with Penn State men's volleyball

On the volleyball court, John Kerr always was an effective blocker. His 6-foot-7 frame combined with his long reach and jumping ability — he can touch 11 feet, 8 inches — made him a natural at that skill.

Penn State coach Mark Pavlik knew it. During Kerr’s freshman season, the Nittany Lions were locked in a tight battle with New Jersey Tech, and Pavlik had been noticing some tendencies with Tech’s best hitter. So he decided to send Kerr, a Derry grad, into the match and told him to snuff out the next kill attempt by said hitter.

The next time Tech set him …

“The block … the ball hit the floor before (Kerr) or the hitter landed,” Pavlik recalled.

Mission accomplished.

What remained unknown, however, was how Kerr could perform if given a larger role. His limited chances over his first two seasons had less to do with his ability than the abilities of the players in front of him, most notably Cal Fisher.

The Riverview grad who played volleyball at Penn Hills is well-established as one of the best opposite hitters in the country. Further, his wicked serve — his 142 career aces rank third in program history — allows him to score points from the back row as well.

But when the 2023 season opened, Fisher was nursing an injury. So, too, were veteran hitters Brett Wildman, the reigning Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association Player of the Year, and Sam Marsh, an all-conference honorable mention.

Short on attackers, Pavlik summoned Kerr to start in the Nittany Lions’ second match of the season against No. 13 Ohio State. Kerr, who himself was coming off a tender ankle, played briefly in Penn State’s season-opening match against Central State, registering a modest six kills in the 3-1 victory.

Against the Buckeyes, however, Kerr was full go, and he responded with a career day: 21 kills (.545 hitting percentage), five blocks and an ace in the 3-1 victory. The 21 kills were more than he had in his previous two seasons combined.

He wasn’t finished. Last weekend, Kerr had 20 kills (.421), five digs and three block assists in a win over No. 5 Pepperdine and 15 kills, eight digs and two aces in a win over No. 8 Stanford. Those numbers earned him EIVA Offensive Player of the Week honors.

With Kerr in the lineup, No. 4 Penn State won its first six matches, half of them against ranked teams, before falling to No. 3 Long Beach State on Wednesday. Kerr had 17 kills in the match.

“It felt great to be able to come out and do that,” Kerr said about the Ohio State match. “At the time, no, I didn’t (know I would be playing an expanded role) because I was still kind of recovering from an ankle injury. I didn’t know what their plans were until pretty much that night.”

As the proverbial “next man up,” Kerr has played his part perfectly.

“We’re scoring a little bit differently with him in there than we are with Fish,” said Pavlik, himself a Derry grad who is in his 29th season at the helm. “Without Fish in the lineup, we’re missing his serve, but with Johnny in the lineup, we’re scoring because of his blocks. We haven’t missed a beat with the points that are going up on the scoreboard.”

A lot about Kerr’s spot in the lineup is “different.”

For Kerr, being more of a situational player in his collegiate career was a big adjustment from being one of the star players in high school. For Pavlik, it changed the way his offense ran because of the differences in how Kerr and Fisher attack.

Fisher can get off the floor quickly and has a lively arm that allows Penn State to utilize more quick sets. Kerr, on the other hand, needs a higher set to account for his longer frame.

Enter Cole Bogner, a grad setter who was the EIVA Player of the Year two seasons ago. He has smoothed out the transition for the Nittany Lions and Kerr.

“Cole understands where Johnny’s (hitting) window is,” Pavlik said. “He knows it’s not Fish’s window. He’s got to let Johnny unfurl a little bit.”

Added Kerr: “It’s nice to have a very experienced setter. You just ride off his confidence. He’s just able to adjust very easily with anything that’s thrown his way.”

Through six matches, Kerr was leading the Nittany Lions in kills (74) and kills per set (4.11). His kills per set, in fact, ranked fifth nationally. He also was second on the team with 17 total blocks.

But, eventually, Fisher will be healthy again. It stands to reason, then, that he would return to his normal spot in the lineup, and Kerr would be back in a situational role.

Pavlik said it’s a good problem to have, and he didn’t rule out the possibility of formulating a lineup where he could take advantage of Kerr and Fisher seeing extended playing time.

Conference play doesn’t begin until Feb. 17, so Pavlik has some time to tinker once everyone is healthy.

“It’s tough to turn down the points we’re getting from Kerr and the way he’s getting them,” Pavlik said. “It’s also tough to tell Fisher, ‘You’re only going to serve once per match,’ and we lose his defense (in the back row).

“First of all, Fish has got to get healthy, and we’ll see when the time comes that we can go full speed with him and be able to go full speed with some options a lineup may give us. (Kerr) rolls with the punches really well. John’s just kind of someone who shrugs his shoulders and says, ‘Hey, whatever you want me to do.’ ”

Kerr said he is prepared for the possibility of returning to a reduced role once everyone is healthy. He said he won’t be discouraged by it, though.

If anything, the early season has encouraged him and shown him and his team what he is capable of contributing.

“That will definitely help me to be able to know I can go out there and play against those kinds of teams and do what I do,” he said.